The name is a bit misleading since the brew has nothing to do with Scotch whisky. The name is a gimmick with no special bearing on the taste. My bottle poured with a centimeter of foam settling quickly, and leaving a kind of lacing. The color was golden on the darkish side. The smell was of sugar and candy with some hops. I'm usually picky about carbonation but I found this beer having just the right amount. Actually, it wasn't that bad. Refreshing, but does it really taste as an English ale? (497 characters)

Pours a pale golden amber colour, with a filmy, large-bubbled head that dissipates to a sudsy scum on the top of the glass. Minimal lacing. Oddly, after pouring, huge bubbles still stay inside the bottle much like detergent residue. Can't say I'm terribly impressed with the look.

Some grainy malt, and a little greenness. Cereal, oatmeal and lightly malted grains are the most dominant characters, although everything is a little vague and washed out. Pleasant enough in a way, not terribly offensive, but not that great either.

Mouthfeel is fuller than I expected, which actually gives a bit of gravitas to the palate as a whole, lending some deeper malt grain notes, and a touch of sweetness. Some acetone character on the back, which gets a bit too dominant by the end, but it's not a bad beer all up.

I'm a big drinker of American and American-style beers, and am used to most of the experimentation being done with hops or other flavouring additions. I like that this one comes with the gimmick of using only one malt, but I'm not sure it really lends any interest to the beer as a whole.

Drinkable enough for what it is, but what it is is nothing particularly special. (1,179 characters)

Appearance: deep orange almost copper colour. Slightly hazy. The very small head is white with poor retention and no lacing. Really not impresive.Aroma: simple aroma of sweet malts.Taste: sweet malts changing gradually to hop bitterness.Mouthfeel: smooth, not so strong carbonation, average alcoholic presence and a medium body.Finish: bitter lingering aftertaste.

Overall: Marston Single Malt has no great characteristic but it is an honest beer. It is well-balanced and nice to drink. Just do not expect anything special about it. (537 characters)

BBE 30 APR 06. Made with "100% Golden Promise malt, one of the oldest varieties of brewing barley", and "popular with Scotch Whisky distillers"--according to the label. I vaguely remember the distinctive taste of Caledonian's Golden Promise ale, which perhaps uses 100% of that malt as well? Like to see what this barley is really about in this ale.

A: pours a lovely bright orangey-golden hue, with an initially 2cm thick foamy white cap slowly settling down; nice, gentle carbonation, looking not bad.
S: slightly skunky at first while being poured, but dissipates fast (thank lord). Followed by an intense ashy smell, then light malts and a deeper, sweet lemony-like aroma of hops behind, both not too strong and quite simple. The maltiness conveys some subtle vanilla hint and a lightly grainy sweet flavour, which, on top of the floating hoppyness, makes the whole thing smell even a bit like a lager to me!
T&M: extremely mild maltiness unlike any other for sure, while the texture is floatingly light and thin on the mouthfeel, with a slightly dryish bitterness and lightly toasty malts at the back of the palate. Short finish of faint hop presence, though it retains a dryish bitter flavour good for a session beer.
D: overall this one is not as flavoursome as many other Marston's products, and a bit off the point IMO. Not too bad, but perhaps they could think about abolishing clear bottles and it just might taste a little better.(?) BTW, as for "Golden Promise" malt, I'd probably revisit Caledonian Golden Promise more often. (1,545 characters)

Other comments: I was a bit wary of buying this beer since it is in a clear bottle which was sitting on the top shelf at a supermarket. Sure enough, skunky as hell. Though it might not seem fair, I'm posting the review anyway with the stench reflected in the 1.5 rating for aroma. It's a clear bottle. They should be adequately punished for that. (762 characters)